Bittersweet Candy
by xMissMacaroni
Summary: The Joker's eyes danced with playful danger. "What's the matter, Candy?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. He smirked when she remained quiet and trembling before him. "Oh I get it. You're so happy to see me you're speechless!" he exclaimed.


Alright, guys! Here it is! The first of many Joker stories on my FanFiction account. This is NOT a happy ending, just to warn you. It's a sad little one-shot. But I've heard it's quite effective and realistic in portraying the Joker's true nature. Sooo, you read and review! Tell me what you think!

* * *

Candice Reeves sat on a wooden bench, holding herself tightly as a cold wind blew through the park. She shivered and stared ahead of her, looking at the dark night sky and lamps that illuminated the park's paved trail. She kept staring straight ahead, ignoring the short strands of dark hair that drifted in front of her face with the wind. Her dark brown eyes shifted finally, looking down at her shoes. Shoes that she'd never get rid of, for the mere significance they held in her heart.

_"Candy girl," came a young man's voice._

_Candice looked up and smiled at her friend. "Jacky boy," she replied._

_'Jacky boy' grinned and walked over to Candice, who was sitting under a tree with a book in her lap. He crouched down and looked at her seriously. "Do you know what today is?" he asked._

_Candice thought for a moment, shaking her head. She noticed then that 'Jacky Boy's hands were held behind his back, as if holding something. Hiding something from her. "What's behind your back, Jack?" she asked, leaning over to try and see the object._

_Jack shifted so that Candice couldn't look. "Ah, ah, ah. You have to figure out what today is," he laughed. His laugh rang through her ears, causing her to smile. It was unlike any other laugh she'd ever heard. It was high pitched, yes, but it held a certain character to it. A certain side to Jack that made him more interesting than anyone Candice had ever met. She looked into Jack's dark eyes and saw them dance with mischief. His long, dirty blond hair blew in the gentle breeze of the Spring afternoon._

_"Come on, Jack. Let me see," she whined._

_Jack rolled his eyes dramatically. "You're no fun, Candy," he said. He finally plopped himself down in front of his female friend and held a box in his hands. A box wrapped in bright purple wrapping with a green bow placed on top._

_Candice looked at the box oddly, tilting her head to the side. "A gift?" she asked. Then it hit her. "My birthday!" she exclaimed. She rolled her eyes at her own stupidity. "Wow...I can't believe I didn't get that.." she muttered._

_Jack laughed and shoved the box into her hands. "Open it. Tell me what you think." he said, leaning on his knees and eagerly awaiting Candice's reaction to what was in the box._

_Candice carefully peeled off the wrapping and saw a regular cardboard box underneath. So she tore off the tape from the two top flaps. The second she opened them, a clown's head sprang out of the box. Candice screamed at the sudden movement and when Jack started laughing, she placed a hand on her chest, attempting to calm her heartbeat. "Jerk," she breathed._

_Jack's fits of laughed died away and he smiled sheepishly at Candice. "Aw. It was only a joke." he said, nudging her._

_Candice smiled, unable to frown around this young man. "Yeah, yeah...what a Joker you are," she said. Then she pulled the springy clown head out of the box and reached inside, pulling out another box. This time, though, the box said 'Converse' along he side. Candice smiled and opened the box and pulling out the shoes that were inside. They were high top converse decorated in purple, green, yellow, and red. There were little hard candy and lolipop shapes all over them._

_"Custom made," Jack announced proudly._

_Candice looked up and smiled at him. "Jack, I love them," she stated, placing them back in the box. Then she leaned toward Jack to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek, but before her lips made contact with the side of his face, Jack turned his head and let his lips meet with her's._

_Candice's eyes widened as she felt her lips touch Jack's, but the shock left her as soon as it came. She let her eyes flutter closed and kissed him back, allowing him to wrap his arms around her body. It was a kiss that let loose all of the pent up feelings between the two. Years of want and longing, all expressed in one kiss. Just as the kiss was going to end, Jack pressed his lips harder against Candice's. It felt as if he was making the most of that one moment because he'd never experience it again._

_Finally, the two parted and inhaled deeply trying to calm the racing of their hearts. Candice looked up and saw Jack's eyes watching her intently. "That...that was..." she couldn't find the right words._

_Jack smiled at her loss of words. "It was the best kiss ever," he said, stroking her cheek. "One I won't ever forget," he added. Then he placed a small kiss on her forehead and then her lips before standing up from his position._

_Candice looked up at him in confusion. "Where are you going?" she asked._

_Jack gave her a grin, different from the others he usually gave her. This one was vicious. Mischievious. "To change Gotham," he stated. Then he turned and walked off, out of the park, and out of Candice's life._

Candice looked down at her shoes with sadness. They were all she had left of Jack. All of her pictures with him, letters they wrote to each other, were gone. They had been ripped from her albums and folders while she was out that day. Most probably by Jack himself. The only thing he let her keep were the shoes.

"I still don't know how you changed Gotham..." Candice whispered to herself. Finally, she stood from her park bench and stretched her limbs, that had been in the same position for over half an hour. Then she began making her way out of the park. She paid no attention to the homeless people sleeping on countless other park benches, she let the chilling stillness of the night slide off her shoulders. But as she walked, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. And not by the random hobos, but by someone else.

Quickly, Candice made her way out of the park and into the public streets. Few cars were out driving in this part of town at this hour. It gave Candice a feeling of relief that there were witness around if anything should happen to her. Then again, many kidnappings and crimes happened in public view. People just chose not to get involved.

When Candice turned a corner on the street, she was faced with an alley that led directly to her apartment. She looked at it, studying the dark shadows and dangerous air. Her apartment would be right across the street from the alley. She couldn't get into too much trouble with such a short walk...could she? No. Absolutely not. There were still cars around. If she screamed, someone would hear her. Still, the alley intimidated Candice and she found herself rooted in her spot on the sidewalk. Clouds blew past the moon and let the shining light from its fullness seep into the alley. Finally, Candice began her brisk stride to the end of the alley.

Half way there. Just a few more steps. Creepy dumpster coming up...move away...move away from it! Move!

Candice's mind wouldn't silence itself. As she walked through the alley, she noticed she was nearing a dumpster. Speeding her pace, Candice was going to walk past the haunting dumpster as quickly as she could.

"BOO!"

Candice jumped, her heart kickstarting in fear. Her mouth opened to scream, but a hand shot out and covered her mouth. A gloved hand. A leather glove. Wide and frightened eyes looked up and widened even more (if possible) when she saw her companion in the alley. Chalk white face, ruby red lips drawn up in a permanent smile, dark hallow-looking eyes, greasy green hair. The terror of Gotham City. The Clown Prince of Crime.

"Joker," Candice squeaked as the hand dropped from her mouth.

The villain grinned wickedly. "Ahh. You know me," he said, his chilling voice making Candice shiver. "But I don't know you," he stated. He let out a howl of laughter that made Candice jump in fear. "What's your name, doll face?" he asked.

Candice tried stepping away from him to put some distance between them. "C-Candice.." she said softly. The wind blew through the alley and caught some of the Joker's hair, shuffling it. The look in the Joker's eyes changed. Instead of giving off their threatening glare, they melted in confusion and something that Candice hadn't seen in anyone's eyes for a long time. When she made a move to step toward the Joker, the look disappeared and the grin returned to his face.

Two long strides closed the gap between them and the Joker looked down into her eyes. "Candy girl."

Candice blinked in confusion for a moment, but then widened in shock. No one had called her that since Jack. "No..." she murmured in denial.

The Joker's eyes danced with playful danger. "What's the matter, Candy?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. He smirked when she remained quiet and trembling before him. "Oh I get it. You're so happy to see me you're speechless!" he exclaimed, letting out a shrill laugh.

Candice shook with fear, but her tremors seemed to die down as she heard the Joker's laughter. It reminded her of the unique laugh Jack had. It soothed her, oddly enough. Hesitantly, she lifted her eyes to the Joker's. His were dark, not only in color but in the look he gave the rest of the world. Then she took in the rest of his face, cringing when she saw his scars. Slowly, she lifted her hand to his face and let her fingers hover over the jagged carvings on his cheeks. When the Joker made no motion to stop her, she placed her fingers on the rough scars and her eyes saddened."What happened to you...?" she whispered.

The Joker looked down at Candice, the dance of mischief gone from his eyes. No woman had touched his scars before this moment. It felt oddly soothing to have Candice's soft fingers tracing the deep scars, as if trying to absorb their history or make them go away. "Nothing that you should worry too much over," he stated simply.

Candice pulled her hand away suddenly and cradled it as if touching him had burned her. "You...are an asshole," she said shakily. It took all of her courage to utter that one statement, and now that it was out, she felt as if she could continue a rant for a good ten minutes. But her remark made the Joker frown and his eyes flashed dangerously. It was almost enough to make Candice cower in fear, but she was already pumping adrenaline through her bloodstream. Nothing would be able to stop the next string of words to come from her mouth.

"You left me those years ago so you could become _this?_" she asked, looking him up and down in disgust. "This..horrifying mass murderer?! This is how you're changing Gotham? I can't believe you! How dare you break my heart and trash something that could been so wonderful!?" Candice cried, coming close to hysterics. After Jack had left her those years ago, she had become mentally unstable. She would have outbursts of anger or sadness and she would rarely be able to control herself in such states. This, unfortunately, was one of them.

The Joker grew angrier with every word Candice shouted at him. Her voice, as beautiful as it was, was twisted in anger and pain as she threw insults and accusations at him. It made him want to hurt her, and hear her angelic voice twist in fear and physical, rather than emotional, pain. But while her cries made him angry, they also unlocked an emotion that he had burried long ago. Guilt, was it? He wasn't sure; it was so foreign to him now. It didn't last long, though. The Joker had lived too long without such emotions that his intincts brought him back to violence.

In the middle of her rant, Candice saw the Joker become angrier with her. She knew of the rising danger she was creating, but she couldn't stop herself. She had to continue and let out all of her pent up anger, frustration, and pain. But then suddenly, Candice saw the Joker smile. His lips drew up in a twisted and malicious smile. What was he doing, smiling like that? Candice couldn't even register it fully for the Joker, in an instant, had her pinned against the alley wall.

Immediately, Candice's yelling ceased. She looked up at the Joker's dangerous eyes in fear and began trembling, her knees quickly losing the ability to keep her up. Luckily, the Joker held her up so she would not fall. This wasn't necessarily a good thing, though.

"Aw, what's the matter? Finally come to your senses and shut up?" the Joker asked, giving her an evil smirk. While one hand supported Candice's body between himself and the alley wall, the other hand rose and stroked her cheek that he realized was now wet with tears. He smiled and gazed into her fearful eyes. "Shh. Don't cry," he cooed, now stroking her hair. He looked into her eyes and studied her facial expression.

Candice's heart swelled as the Joker stroked her hair. For a moment, Candice thoroughly confused herself. At one moment, she was scared for her life by this man, the next she was attatched to him, then she was fitfully upset with him, then she's afraid once more, and now she's softened by him. She really was mentally and emotionally unstable. She couldn't bring herself to stay angry with him, she knew that. She couldn't fear him for too long. Her love, or what she thought was love, clouded over her and she couldn't help but feel attached to him.

Slowly, Candice pushed against the wall and practically closed the gap between them. Her lips were so close to his, she could feel his hot breath on her mouth. No doubt that the closeness, and silence of the night, would have allowed the Joker to hear her pounding heartbeat. She looked up into his eyes for a moment, and then looked down at his ruby lips, debating whether or not she should kiss him or not. But before she could even come to a conclusion about what to do, the Joker tilted his head and devoured her lips with his own.

Forcefully, the Joker pushed Candice against the wall and kissed her with such a fervor and passion that scared him. As his lips molded to her's, and his tongue pushed itself into her mouth, his memories of their first and only kiss together flashed before his eyes. That kiss in the past had let out all of the emotions pent up inside the both of them. This one did the same, but was only a thousand times stronger. Feelings of hurt, love, anger, guilt. They all flooded through the Joker's, and even Candice's, mind.

Finally, Candice and the Joker pulled away from one another and gasped for air. Candice's head swam with bliss as her lips tingled. It was Jack alright. Her heart swelled with happiness. She found him. She just hoped she wouldn't lose him again. The Joker, on the other hand, thought a little differently. He was immensely happy that Candice was back, but the feelings erupting inside of him were too much, he wasn't used to them. Bliss, happiness, joy...love. They were all so foreign to him now, that he didn't know how to handle them. He didn't even know if he was capable of holding onto them for so long.

Candice looked up at the Joker, her brown eyes shining with love and adoration for the man before her. "Jack," she began. The Joker's hand shot up to cover her mouth, but they reached her lips a little too late. "I love you," she sighed just before his hand silenced her.

The Joker shut his eyes tightly and leaned his forehead against her's. Then he opened them and peered down into Candice's eyes, seeing the raw emotion in them. He, no doubt, was probably mirroring some form of that emotion, but he didn't know how to control it, and he hated that. But finally, he smirked and let his pointed nose touch her's. "And I love you."

Candice's eyes welled with tears of happiness and love as a breathless smile crossed her lips. She felt the Joker's hand slip into his pocket and pull something out. A click was heard and suddenly her eyes widened and the corners of her mouth dropped, a look of shock on her features. "And I always will..." she heard him murmur and felt a small kiss on her lips. She looked up at the Joker, disbelief and betrayal flashing through her eyes.

The Joker pulled away from Candice and stepped back, leaving her against the wall of the alley gripping her abdomen. A long knife protruded from her stomach and her clothing was quickly becoming stained with blood. The Joker walked back over to her and yanked the knife from the wound, causing Candice to gasp and cough up blood before slumping to the floor. Without a backwards glance, the Joker walked off and out of the alley, staring up at the sky with a lost look in his eye

Candice whimpered in pain and coughed up more blood as the burning sensation in her stomach began to spread all over her body, numbing her. The last thing she saw was the Joker turning the corner and disappearing from view before everything went black forever.


End file.
